Ewell Powers EV Over Cda Knights’ Super Strong Running Back Gains 221 Yards In 24-21 Victory

Jesse Ewell was East Valley’s answer to Coeur d’Alene, and the 5-foot-9, 205-pound senior running back responded.

Ewell scored twice in the space of 3 minutes as the third quarter wore down to lift the Knights to 24-21 non-league football victory over the Vikings on Friday night in Spokane.

The latter TD, a 61-yarder busted up the middle with 3:46 to go in the third, staked East Valley to a 24-14 advantage.

It also countered a 71-yard TD reception for Coeur d’Alene senior wide receiver Todd Hughes at the 5:24 mark. Ben Davis’ PAT kick pulled the Vikings to within 17-14.

Knights cornerback Chris Skidmore intercepted Coeur d’Alene quarterback Nick Rook in the end zone with 15 seconds left in the third quarter.

Neither team gained much ground on the next three series, including one sequence that ended with East Valley punting from its own 9-yard line with 6:11 to go. Vikings senior Travis Lovejoy blocked the punt, then recovered the ball in the end zone. Davis’ PAT again made it a three-point game.

“Jesse had a heckuva night,” East Valley coach Jim Clements said of Ewell, who finished with 221 yards rushing on 32 carries.

“(Ewell) really ran hard. He was our answer to whatever Coeur d’Alene could do. He’s a horse. He’s the sprinter on our track team, and the strongest kid I’ve ever had in the weight room.”

It was the fourth consecutive win for the Knights (1-0), who totaled 271 yards rushing and 89 passing.

Senior end Jason Sharp led the East Valley defense with a quarterback sack and a fumble recovery.

Coeur d’Alene (0-2) ran for just 39 yards, as Rook’s passing opened the offense up a little bit in the second half. Rook completed 8 of 18 attempts for 166 yards, including 119 in the second half.

“We just got to quit making mistakes and hurting ourselves,” Vikings coach Bill Anderson said.

The costliest of Coeur d’Alene miscues resulted in East Valley’s first TD. On fourth-and-12, the Vikings were called for roughing the kicker, which gave the Knights a first down on the Coeur d’Alene 27.

One play later, running back Billy Armtrout scored over the right sideline and East Valley never trailed.

The Knights travel to meet Lake City (0-2) in Coeur d’Alene on Friday, while the Vikings visit Deer Park.

East Valley 24, CdA 21

Coeur d’Alene 0 7 7 7 -21 East Valley 7 3 14 0 -24

EV-Armtrout 27 run (Hughes kick)

EV-Hughes 32 field goal

CdA-Peebles 10 pass from Rook (Davis kick)

EV-Ewell 2 run (Hughes kick)

CdA-Hughes 71 pass from Rook (Davis kick)

EV-Ewell 61 run (Hughes kick)

CdA-Lovejoy recovers blocked punt in end zone (Davis kick)